Commissioner Rosenworcel Remarks at 20 Years of Connecting Schools and Libraries Policy Summit

More can be done to address the Homework Gap. Carriers across the country are pitching in by making available low-cost broadband service. Libraries everywhere from Maine to Missouri are loaning out wireless hotspots—and letting students borrow connectivity for schoolwork. Rural school districts are putting Wi-Fi on buses and turning ride time into connected time for homework. Communities are mapping out where free online access is available for student use. These efforts deserve applause. More importantly, they deserve expansion. We need to get creative about the Homework Gap if we want to solve it. If we do we can turn more of our students from digital consumers into digital creators. And that’s worth the effort.

I’ll end here and thank you again for having me join you to mark this important anniversary. Thank you to everyone in this room for what you have done to make E-Rate the powerful program it is today. Thank you for what you will do to fight for it in the future. And thank you for your deep commitment to ensuring that every student has the opportunity they need to develop the digital skills they need for a fair shot—no matter who they are, where they live, or where they go to school.